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July 2016 www.coalage.com 13 news continued 272,169 tons in 2015, federal Mine Safety and Health Adminis- tration figures show. It has about 27 employees. Parrish said the Red Hawk closings, affecting approximate- ly 200 employees, will not impact Blackhawk Mining's plans to produce about 16 million tons of steam and metallurgical coal this year. The company temporarily idled three other eastern Kentucky surface mines — Rowdy Gap, Spencer Fork and Thunder Ridge — in April. They are part of the Pine Branch business unit acquired by Blackhawk Mining in 2012 from Pine Branch Coal Sales. Peabody Sues Bowie Over Mine Sale Deal As it continues to wade through its Chapter 11 bankruptcy case, Peabody Energy has entered a lawsuit against Bowie Resource Holdings, which was to take over three of its western U.S. mines in a $358 million deal. The suit was filed in June in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in St. Louis and includes a $20 million termination fee the producer said was negotiated as part of the deal's terms. Bowie was to purchase the Twentymile longwall operation in western Colorado and the El Segundo and Lee Ranch mining surface com- plexes in New Mexico. According to the St. Louis Business Journal, Peabody said Bowie was unable to obtain financing for the deal, resulting in the failed deal, and thus far has refused to pay the agreed-upon fee. Peabody first filed for bankruptcy in April. OVJA Fights for Coal Jobs The Ohio Valley Jobs Alliance (OVJA), a grassroots organization fighting to protect coal mining jobs in the Ohio Valley region, is working to defeat more than a half-dozen natural gas-burning power plants under development in Ohio and West Virginia. OVJA said coal miners throughout Central Appalachia and Northern Appalachia have endured significant threats to their livelihood during the past few years as dozens of mines have closed or cut back operations in the face of stricter environmen- tal regulations from the federal Environmental Protection Agency and low natural prices that have led to coal to gas switching by some electric utilities in the region. In eastern Kentucky, for instance, coal employment plunged to fewer than 5,900 jobs at the end of 2015, the lowest figure in decades. Against this backdrop, several out-of-state power plant devel- opers such as Advanced Power AG, a Swiss-based company that develops plants in Europe, the Middle East and the United States, are planning to build large gas plants in Ohio and West Virginia that would be capable of operating around the clock, similar to baseload coal plants. They said new gas generation will replace the thousands of megawatts of retiring coal generation. Advanced Power's latest project is the 1,105-megawatt South Field Energy combined-cycle gas plant in Columbiana County, Ohio. OVJA also is opposing the 549-megawatt Moundsville Power gas plant proposed for Marshall County, West Virginia. During a recent West Virginia Department of Environmen- tal Protection hearing for Moundsville Power, OVJA member Jim Thomas testified on behalf of the organization. "The mission of OVJA, is to protect good jobs for the families of West Virginia," he ■ 6X more CM systems operating in U.S. coal mines than any other manufacturer ■ P recise location of workers maximizes safety and productivity ■ Dynamic SharpZone TM technology - maximizes mine productivity - minimizes nuisance / f alse alarms sales@matrixteam.com MineOwl Mobile Machinery Low-Light Camera System Camera Bright LED lights housed in rugged XP housing Hi-res LCD monitor in rugged XP housing Mining Technology Sept 26-28 Booth 2829 See a Demo at